


I might need some assistance

by Anchan (Anchan_thevolleyballplayer)



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternative Universe - Bookstore/Library, Han Jisung | Han is Whipped, Lee Minho | Lee Know is a flirt, M/M, Meet-Cute, just me gushing about a few amazing fics go check them out!, saying that phrase is funny, the summary is lame but the story isn't I promise, this fic does not contain paid promo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-03-13 11:33:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,070
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28652808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anchan_thevolleyballplayer/pseuds/Anchan
Summary: He doesn’t realise he’s been caught in his thoughts, nor the pitiful whine that escapes his mouth, until someone coughs right next to his ear. He seems to have earned the librarian’s attention.Alternatively; Minho shouldn’t be this smooth, and Jisung shouldn’t be as useless when talking to him.
Relationships: Han Jisung | Han/Lee Minho | Lee Know
Comments: 29
Kudos: 154





	I might need some assistance

**Author's Note:**

> The project of 2021: Self-indulging idea No.1
> 
> I would have sworn the idea is older than three months but well it waited long enough and I’m in the mood for something silly and cute after the early 2021 angst bomb.
> 
> Update: I linked the mentioned fics in the end notes, so they're easier to find ^^

Jisung coming to the library isn’t de facto _weird._

A rare occasion, yes, but that’s mostly because he divides his free time between schoolwork, music production, and watching anime. He _does_ read books too, sometimes. 

Not enough to be called a bookworm, and far from enough to know about the latest obsessions, but he’s fairly invested in his favourite series and he loves a good read to spend a rainy afternoon with. Maybe he does it for the feels more than the plot, and he especially enjoys getting new inspiration for stylisation and metaphors, but that doesn’t make him less of a good reader. 

It’s just that he doesn’t actually _know_ much about books, nor the authors. 

Which is why he finds himself lingering by the front desk; he wants some recommendations. Upon finishing his favourite series recently, there’s nothing new to spark the same interest in him. He went through a lot of research and read tons of reviews, but he can’t find anything _special._

LGBT+ books are hard to find and get a hold of anyway, and there are just too many regular romance and fantasy stories to keep track of everything. Most of them sound the exact same, sans the character names. 

Which is why he wants some help, and he _will_ ask for it, eventually - maybe not in the near future, at least not until the colour in his cheeks dies down, though. 

He came to the library maybe twenty minutes ago, yet he hasn’t worked up the courage to actually approach it; he’s been idly waiting and watching from afar because the librarian is quite handsome. 

  
And librarians surely shouldn’t be this handsome, for their own good. 

On the other hand, maybe it’s a good strategy to keep guests too flustered to cause much ruckus. 

When he finally comes up to the front desk, it’s when the librarian ducks underneath the counter to find a tucked away purchase, probably a newly ordered package of books. 

It gives him an extra moment to prepare a short speech — brief, to the point, instead of stuttering out an essay on why he desperately needs a boyfriend. Yes, that already happened to him, but he’d rather not get into the details, since it was an experience he wishes to forget. 

He doesn’t realise he’s been caught in his thoughts, nor the pitiful whine that escapes his mouth, until someone coughs right next to his ear. He seems to have earned the librarian’s attention. 

“May I help you with something?” he inquires, offering him a slightly mischievous customer smile. 

And waits. 

“I, uh, hello,” Jisung belatedly stumbles out, immediately cursing at himself. “I might need some assistance.” 

The man behind the counter perks up at that, the corners of his mouth stretching out in a more genuine expression. He’s probably just as happy to take a break from checking out borrowed books. “Anything specific?” 

He swears that, at some point, there _was_ a brief speech waiting to be said, but one look from the piercing eyes makes it crumble to incoherent mush. 

“N-not really,” he admits, worrying his lip - he _could have_ at least come up with a few authors he previously read. “Sorry.”

Come on, brain, _work_. 

“It’s okay,” the man shakes his head, and Jisung has a hard time focusing on his words; there’s just too much to process at once. From the soft locks swirling around his head, through the pretty eyes turning into crescents as he smiles, to the shape of his lips when he speaks. “Just tell me what you like.” 

_Your lips,_ but that probably isn’t an appropriate answer. “Uh, I read fantasy… a-and romance, comedies?” 

“Slice of life?” the librarian suggests, and he dumbly nods along. “That will cover three sections, but it won’t take long to find something for you.” 

They go on a tour around the library, with Jisung telling him about what he likes and Minho giving him certain books he’s heard of that are supposedly good. And through the whole time, Jisung fails to produce a coherent sentence that wouldn’t either fall apart in the middle or fade out into a squeezed out whisper. 

They start at the closest aisle of foreign books and Jisung actually stops to read a title or two, but the man leads him further. It amazes him to see so many books at one place, shelves overflowing with the small pockets of knowledge and philosophies and hidden emotions. 

So many words can fit into such a small paperback, and so many different thoughts can be stored side by side.

What would it be like, if all the authors showed up to represent their works? 

“ _Definitely a dragon_ ,” the man exclaims, almost victoriously. 

“E-excuse me?” he squeaks, looking up at the man in bewilderment. He briefly notes a nametag pinned to his woollen vest — Lee Minho — before he settles his eyes on the subtle upturn of his lips, then his eyes. 

Minho quirks an eyebrow, visibly amused at his antics. “The book, you might like it.” 

“Oh,” he breathes out, scrambling for the book that’s pressed into his hands, hoping he won’t embarrass himself by dropping it. His hands are shaking slightly, grip weak, but he manages to keep the book in them. 

Minho doesn’t say anything, turning away to lead him further. It seems he has a destination in mind, but then his eyes wander to the nearest return desk and he changes course. The book he holds out to Jisung is weirdly familiar. 

“ _A warm slice of summer_ ,” he reads out loud, “you will enjoy it no matter what age.” 

The beach on the cover looks welcoming, as if it were inviting Jisung to open it. It reminds him of his own childhood, spending the summers running around in the sand and chasing the ocean waves. 

“ _Touch the stars_ ,” is the next book Minho has to climb a stool to get a hold of, skilfully avoiding both losing balance and letting the neighbouring books fall to the floor. “You seem like a feelings-oriented guy.” 

That one Jisung knows, but he doesn’t dare to speak up, so he willingly takes it. 

It occurs to him how impressing it actually is, navigating through the abundance of books without fail. He would have already lost direction, attention or sense of what he’s looking for in the first place. Neither does he think Minho _knows_ what he’s looking for, as Jisung was nothing much of a help earlier, but despite searching blindly, he seems to pick out Jisung’s taste easily. 

“ _Engraved between the lines_ might just pique your interest,” Minho muses and has the audacity to send him a _freaking wink_. Jisung wonders what’s the possibility of him flirting, rather than implying a spicy theme. 

“ _Make lemonade_ , my favourite,” he confesses softly as he holds out the book to Jisung. 

He thinks he might have heard about this one —nothing but praises about the unconventional take on soulmates concept, sprinkled with some nice banter — but he hasn’t had the chance to read it yet. 

Balancing 5 books, he wonders if there’s more coming from Minho’s recommendations. These are enough to keep him up at night for the whole school break. Yes, he’s a slow reader. 

“One last,” Minho reassures him, as if he could sense what he’s thinking. “ _Even if your daytime is my nighttime…_ ” 

“ _I will stay awake for you_ ,” Jisung supplies, not quite realising he has said that out loud until he finds Minho staring openly at him, taken aback. It only stays for a moment before Minho relaxes into a pleased smile. “I can’t let you go without that.”

Jisung finally gets a breather when Minho pulls him into a nook with working tables and stacks the pile of books on the nearest desk. He doesn’t say anything, but it’s clear their tour ends here - Jisung finds himself both relieved, for being spared any more embarrassment, and disappointed. 

He awkwardly thanks him when Minho assures him that he’ll be at the counter and waves him off, then slumps down to reflect on his foolish first impression and take a look at the books. 

_Engraved between the lines_ is what attracts his attention, remembering the flirtations attempt earlier. It’s a collection of drabbles from various unique points of view - upon reading, he can surely say that there was no explicit content warning hidden behind the wink. 

Which might be even more embarrassing than being recommended an adult-rated book. Minho just boldly flirted with him and he didn’t even have enough decency to acknowledge it. 

_Way to go, Jisung,_ he sighs and reaches a hand to his forehead to give himself a comforting pat. 

Eager to think about anything else, he reaches for the second book, _Definitely a Dragon_ , and satisfied with the quirky humour, he gets lost in the story. 

He registers the sound of placing a book by his right before he sees it — the sound is enough to pull him out of headspace and back into the present. The main character was _just_ about to confess their feelings, but whatever, that can wait. 

When he looks up, he’s met with Minho’s sparkling eyes and a playful smile, and he decides that indeed, anything happening in the story _will have to wait._

He gulps the flustered squeal back into his throat and looks down onto the table, scanning the new book. 

_How to be a charming flirt._

“Hey, who said I’m not already good at it!” he stutters out, then heats up as Minho shushes him for the rise of his voice. He quickly apologises, sheepish. 

Minho just laughs at his expense, and it shouldn’t make him look _this_ attractive, especially not with such a cute heartfelt laughter. It’s fortunate that Minho can’t stop shaking, eyes fluttered close, because he at least can’t see Jisung staring shamelessly. 

“I’m good at flirting,” he says in a more levelled tone once Minho calms down and stops laughing. 

The librarian takes a pause to give him a once-over that leaves Jisung blushing, then returns to stare right into his eyes challengingly. Oh, that’s _hot._  
  
  


“Oh? I’ll need a demonstration,” he teases, lips quirking into an amused smile. 

Jisung feels blood rushing to his cheeks and ears, and he _knows_ — the universe is giving him a second chance to flirt back. To make himself known as more than just a panicked gay. 

It’s not going according to Jisung’s expectations though, head almost empty, except for whatever part of Minho his brain decides to appreciate at that moment.  
  
  


“If I’m not keeping you from work…” he glances around nervously, but no one’s paying attention to them. On the other hand, Minho is fully focusing on him and makes it hard to think clearly.  
  
  


Minho looks at the stack of books by his hand briefly, wavering, but he quickly regains composure. “My shift ends in an hour.”  
  
  


“I can wait that long,” Jisung beams at him, chest filling with disbelief and excitement. 

Minho goes back to the counter, leaving him all tingly and bubbly; he tries to occupy himself with the book again but the butterflies in his stomach are too distracting. 

He places it down in defeat. 

Seeing the new book innocently sitting afar, it’s much more interesting. He peeks into the guide out of curiosity — _not_ because he would need any advice on flirting, he doubts it would make it less awkward when facing Minho, at least not until he becomes used to the handsome face and cute smile. 

What he’s met with are countless pick-up lines and date suggestions, but something catches his attention anyway — a bookmark — and turning to the page 25, he finds a note inside. 

_If your crush is dense enough, follow said steps..._

At first, he thinks it couldn’t have been put there by Minho, it’s probably something the previous owner forgot to take out. But then he reads further, and it becomes more and more clear that he’s the rightful recipient. 

He glances back at the books, as the messy handwriting suggests, and takes a proper look at the titles (again, following the instructions). _Six books with titles that spell DATE ME._

_If he doesn’t respond, he’s not worth it,_ is what the torn paper ends with — when turned to the other side, a phone number circled with hearts stares back at Jisung. 

_Or I might just give you a second chance ;)_

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading~ 
> 
> [Definitely a Dragon](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26296933/chapters/64026805) by glissandos  
> [A warm slice of summer](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28187787) by stellalunar  
> [Touch the stars](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25371793) by dawnshine  
> [Engraved between the Lines](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24877399) by Anchan (me)  
> [Make lemonade](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20816270) by luckyday  
> [Even if your daytime is my nighttime, i will stay awake for you](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24070222) by 4419blues
> 
> (I hope the links work correctly? idk I've never done this before)
> 
> also thanks to everyone who gave me fic suggestions for the particular letters, I never would have thought it's so hard to look for titles that start with specific letters... not all the suggestions made it into the fic but that doesn't mean they're any less amazing, I just had a certain image in mind with what I'm looking for (which, admittedly, make it a lot more difficult)
> 
> Do you have any thoughts? share them in the comments section <3


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